


Bystander Effect

by Pandasal



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Gen, follows p5 royal, green pencil case boy is given the name of azuma kurou, names are written in eastern order, outsider pov, p5 protag is referred to as amamiya ren, tho he's practically a semi-OC at this point
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-12 05:29:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29504844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pandasal/pseuds/Pandasal
Summary: Everyone knows that the easiest way to live a peaceful life is to simply not get involved.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 31





	Bystander Effect

**Author's Note:**

> this is just something that has been sitting in my head for some years now.
> 
> i'm not sure if anyone's interested in this sort of thing, so if there's anyone who bothers to actually read this, thank you for reading my self-indulgent word vomit.
> 
> just in case, there are some trigger warnings of abuse, attempted suicide and suicide ideation as per the canon storyline.

Azuma Kurou is just your simple, ordinary second-year highschooler. He lives a simple life, with simple friends.

Study hard, get good grades, get accepted into a good college, and work hard when you get a decent job. That's what it is to become a productive member of society. And to fulfill that role he lives just like any good high school student would, by doing his best to focus on his studies and living a peaceful life. He especially can't afford to have any big screw ups in his grades and school life, not when he's enrolled in a prestigious school like Shujin High School that his mother recommended to him.

So everyday, when Kitano shows up in class with bruises, he pretends nothing's wrong. He pretends nothing's wrong even as he sees the bruises worsening and becoming more and more noticeable with each passing day. He pretends nothing's wrong as he continues his daily student life; talking, lending pencils and exchanging school notes with him; right until the day Kitano never shows up in school and Kawakami-sensei explains to the class that he suffered from an accidental injury and would be transferring schools.

He pretends that nothing's wrong as he goes to class everyday like he normally does, sits down in his seat, and takes down notes with a tight grip on his pencil with the empty desk right in front of him.

He is just your simple ordinary highschooler. There was nothing he could have done, anyway.

**4/11**

Today their school is expecting a new transfer student. The whole school is on edge, as it wasn't just any normal transfer student that was going to be arriving. He's heard the rumors. It's all everyone's been talking about lately.

The transfer student is a criminal.

"He beats up students and steals their money"

"I heard that someone from his previous school said he smokes and does drugs"

"I heard he's in the yakuza"

"He's killed someone before and people have been desperately trying to cover it up"

Those are just among the many rumors people have been saying about him. Any nasty or illegal activity that exists, rumors say he's done it all. Students and faculty are wary and have been protesting at what could have possibly made the principal think that accepting a crimimal into a school such as theirs was a good idea; even for an illustrious high school such as Shujin, trying to boost the school's reputation by taking in a criminal in the hopes of reforming them sounds too dangerous. There are some rumors that say the student himself forced or bribed the principal just to let him in.

In any case, that guy was bad news. And of all of the luck, their class just so happened to be the one chosen for him to be attending in. "The only class with an available vacancy" is what he heard them say. He tries to not let that thought dwell in him too much.

Everyone in the classroom was tensed up and ready for the transfer student's arrival today, but when homeroom started and eventually first period came, there were still no signs of the transfer student. The wariness morphs into confusion. Did he skip classes? As expected of a criminal. He doesn't take school any seriously at all, is what everyone whispers.

It's only after lunch period ends is when Kawakami-sensei enters with the transfer student in tow. Kawakami-sensei explains that they had him attend class in the afternoon because he wasn't feeling well, but everyone in class immediately has their doubts.

"Nice to meet you. My name is Amamiya Ren."

The transfer student introduces himself properly with a quiet voice. At first glance, he doesn't seem like a criminal at all. He doesn't look like the thugish delinquent one would have imagined a criminal would be. He looks like just any normal person.

But everyone in class knows better than to let their guard down. He may look like an unassuming quiet guy, but who knows what'll happen if you even look at him the wrong way. It's best to not risk it. He's a guy who was arrested for assault after all.

"Your seat will be..."

Kurou had already come to expect this. He's already been too aware of the sole empty desk that gazes upon him in this classroom many times, so he had already braced himself to where the transfer student would inevitably be placed. That still doesn't stop the dread that wells up within him as he sees Kawakami-sensei gesture in his direction.

The transfer student comes to approach the direction of his desk, but not before exchanging a few words with Takamaki. Kurou watches their interaction with confusion and curiosity. Do those two know each other?

Beside him, he could hear Tachibana and Fujiwara whispering to each other at witnessing those two.

"That side of the room is totally awful."

Come on now! He wishes they wouldn't gossip with each other so bluntly about that kind of opinion when he's right here!! He's already cursing himself for his crappy luck enough as it is to be in "that awful side of the room"!!

As Kawakami-sensei starts the class, the transfer student turns from his seat to face behind.

"Excuse me... For this lesson, may I borrow a textbook?"

Ah crap. Right. Kawakami-sensei told them to share textbooks with him for today. Kurou glances at Tachibana and Fujiwara, who aren't even looking their way as they pretend to focus on their notes with uncomfortable expressions on their faces. Kurou sighs, the resignation filling him. So it's decided then.

"Here." Hesitantly, he hands over his textbook and notes containing the previous lessons.

"Thank you." Kurou blinks, slightly thrown off at the transfer student's tone. It's like he sounds... sincerely grateful? He quickly shakes the thought away. He can't let his guard down! It's a criminal he's talking with here! A criminal!

Once class is over, he gets back his textbook and notes and rushes out of the classroom. He's not going to take any chances.

He heads for the train station, then drops off at Shibuya. He makes a stop to the bakery and buys himself a snack like he always does before he heads for his usual part time job.

"Ah, Azuma-kun! What perfect timing! There's this bouquet I'd like for you to arrange!"

"Oh, of course. I'll get started on it right away. What kind of bouquet will I be making this time?"

Hanasaki-san smiles. "A bouquet for new beginnings."

**4/12**

Today is another rainy day, so Kurou brings his umbrella as he makes his way to the train station. When he goes up to stand along the other Shujin students waiting in line, he feels his heart react with panic upon recognizing a familiar set of curls. Really!? He just had to meet up with the criminal transfer student first thing in the morning!? He opts for trying to stand as far away as much as he can from the transfer student in this crowd of students.

"Hey, isn't that her?"

His ears catch two students whispering to each other nearby. They seemed to be looking over at a red haired girl wearing a ribbon on her hair. She does seem cute. He then notices that the girl is wearing a Shujin uniform. Kurou recognizes that the badge she's wearing is for first-year students. As much as he tries to recall, he doesn't think he remembers seeing a first-year like her in Shujin before.

Oh, right. Wasn't there the news that they would be having two new transfer students this year? Aside from the delinquent transfer student, Shujin would be welcoming another one. He's heard this other transfer student is an accomplished gymnast who would be coming to enroll with a scholarship. Kurou couldn't help but note the sheer contrast between the two. A delinquent and a talented athlete coming to transfer at the same time... it makes for a strangely odd yet fateful coincidence.

He gets inside the train along with the other students when it arrives, trying to avoid being near the delinquent transfer student as much as possible. Though much to his luck, he ends up finding a position near him anyway. He makes sure to carefully avoid any contact with the delinquent transfer student, but his eyes glance over when he sees the first-year girl stand up from her seat and offer it to an old woman. What a nice girl.

Kurou frowns upon seeing a man rush over to take the seat and quickly falls asleep on the spot. What a rude guy! Even if he was tired, that was meant for the granny! Didn't he have any manners towards the elderly!?

To Kurou's surprise, he hears the delinquent transfer student speak up to the first-year girl. "You should say something." 

"It's all right. I understand his position as well." This girl, is she a saint?

However, Kurou is honestly more surprised at the transfer student's intervention. That guy, he's a delinquent, right? The first-year girl and the granny should be none of his concern; why is he bothering with that sort of thing?

...Well, the transfer student isn't also any of his business anyway. Kurou looks away, silently clutching the train strap for the rest of the ride to school. Today would technically make this the transfer student's "official" start to class, being introduced to the other teachers he wasn't able to meet with yesterday. Ushimaru-sensei is already on to him, by immediately picking him to answer a question. To everyone's surprise, the transfer student is able to answer the question correctly. For a delinquent, he's surprisingly smart? Or maybe he just got lucky?

The transfer student just continues to keep surprising him.

**4/13**

Today is the day of the volleyball rally. All students are required to participate, so Kurou has no choice but to follow even if he himself admits he's not particularly a sports person. After taking part in a couple of rounds, he gets to take a break. The girls are cheering loudly for the teams, with the exception of Takamaki. Takamaki doesn't join in on a lot of class activities, and doesn't seem to hang out with any of the other girls in school. Her only friend seems to be a girl from the volleyball club.

Kurou sees the transfer student sitting beside Sakamoto at the side of the gymnasium. People have said that they've seen the transfer student hanging out with Sakamoto since day one, which makes them a dangerous duo to stay away from. Of course misfits like them would band together; they'll bring nothing but trouble, everyone said.

His idly returns his attention back towards the court, seeing Kamoshida-sensei do another serve headed towards Mishima. The girls cry out as the impact of the ball sends Mishima collapsing on the floor. Kamoshida-sensei rushes over with an apology, as he calls for someone to take him to the nurse's office. Must've been a nasty spike. Kamoshida-sensei's serves are swift and hard, and executes them with practiced technique. It's to be expected from a former Olympic gold medalist.

Still...

He shouldn't be having any thoughts like this; he shouldn't be having any doubtsーand yet it almost seemed like that... he had hit Mishima hard on purpose. He knows it should be wrong to think of Kamoshida-sensei this way, when he knows Kamoshida-sensei is supposed to be a teacher he should be respecting with all of his achievements and contributions he's done for the school... But he just can't shake off this feeling of unease he gets from Kamoshida-sensei. He glances down at the bruises in his arms from the times Kamoshida-sensei's ball had roughly hit.

_"What? These bruises? Don't worry about it! I'm the team captain of the volleyball club after all! I can't be going around slacking off with the training!"_ was what Kitano had said with a smile and a laugh.

**4/14**

Crap, crap...!! He had overslept today!!

Kurou paces himself quickly, muttering out apologizes as he carefully makes his way through the crowd of people in the train station.

_smack_ "Ahー"

But even despite his attempts at dodging people, he feels his shoulder bump into someone. He abruptly stops in place and turns around to apologize.

"Ah, I'm very sorry! I'm really sorry; I didn't mean to bump into you," he says with hurried bows.

_"Train doors are now closing. Please do not try to get into the train."_

Kurou's eyes widen at the announcement. Ah crap. He missed the train. He's going to be a bit late now.

"Oh, that's unfortunate. It appears you have missed the train. I apologize if I got in your way."

He turns his attention back to the person. "Ah, no! Not at all! It should be me who should be apologizing for bumping into you; I'm really very sorry."

"It's fine," The person merely gives him a pleasant smile. Beneath the state of rush and panic in his mind, he feels an odd sense of familiarity at seeing the person's face. "Please do not worry about it. I understand you were quite in a rush."

He spots a book near his shoes and realizes that the person must have dropped it when he bumped into them. He hurriedly makes a move to pick it up. While handing it over, his eyes catch the title of the book.

_Sherlock Holmes?_

The person notices his eyes glance over at the book's cover as he takes the book. "Ah, yes. I'm reading Sherlock Holmes. I'm quite a big fan of detective stories."

"Oh, is that so… Holmes; yes, he's a rather cool and interesting character," Kurou's not particularly a book person, but he admits that Sherlock Holmes is pretty cool. While he's probably not as big of a fan like this person is, he appreciates a good mystery when watching TV every now and then.

The person seems to brighten at his words. "I'm glad to hear you feel the same way. There's just something about detectives such as Holmes that I like. Being this person who is constantly depended on to solve situations that seem impossible is a rather reliable existence, isn't it?"

"Oh, uh, yes…"

"..." The person eyes him in a rather curious manner. He doesn't know how to put it… but it's like the person is… looking at him as if he expects something? Before he could think further about it, the person gives him another smile.

"Well, as it so happens, I will be riding the same train as you. Since we've been given this opportunity, might you consider having a little chat to pass the time?"

Kurou blinks at the offer. Well it's not like he has anything better to do while waiting for the next train anyway, and it would be rude to reject this person as he was the one who ended up inconveniencing him because he had bumped into him. "Oh, of course. I wouldn't mind."

"I apologize if my topics don't seem to particularly interest you," the person says as they walk towards the train platform. "I don't normally get many opportunities to converse with others around my age."

"O-oh, no, it's fine! I find detectives like Holmes a cool existence too! It's just that I don't really read books too much… I prefer to read mysteries in manga…" Kurou admits.

The person nods with a smile. "I see. Reading genres through other forms of media such as manga is rather normal. It's unfortunate that I must admit I don't seem to have hobbies that most normal students would have."

Kurou can't help but feel embarrassed. Though he looks young, the person gives off a rather intelligent and mature aura, so Kurou can't help but feel this sense of embarrassment and inferiority that shows the gap between them.

_"The train will be arriving soon. Please stand behind the yellow line."_

"Well, it looks like this is where we part ways. Though it was brief, it was nice having someone to talk to. Thank you for giving me your time. I apologize if I was being a bother," The person says.

"Ah, no, not at all! It should be me who is apologizing for the bother! I'm really sorry for giving you an inconvenience!" Kurou hurriedly says.

The person continues to smile at him in that pleasant manner of his. "You're from Shujin High School, yes? Shujin High School… one of Tokyo's famous and prestigious prep schools. The people there must have put in a lot of effort throughout the years for the school to have gained its current prestige. I imagine they've done a lot of sacrifices and have been willing to do whatever it takes to maintain its reputation. So as a student of Shujin such as yourself who bears Shujin's image, I believe that's something to keep in mind, so I do hope you take care."

With one final smile, he walks away and enters one of the train cars on the other side.

Kurou could only blink in confusion at his words before he quickly snaps out of his thoughts and heads inside the train himself. While on the silent ride towards school, he's still left with the nagging feeling that he's seen the person before.

Beside him, he hears a highschool girl watching on her phone.

_"With this, highschool detective Akechi Goro-kun has solved another case…"_

The realization hits him.

EhーahーAkechi Goro!? He's been talking to Akechi Goro!! The famous highschool detective!? To think all this time he had been talking to a celebrity… he can't believe he hadn't realized this until now!! Ah… and to think he gave such an inconvenience to him… how greatly embarrassing…

Wonder if he could've also tried to get an autograph… he recalls his little sister is a fan. Kurou sighs. Oh, well. It was just a lucky coincidence. There was nothing he could've done; it's too late now. Kurou lets the thoughts fade away.

It's not like they'll be meeting ever again, anyway.

\---

Kurou places his notes and textbooks in his bag, preparing to leave school for the day. When he exits the classroom, he sees the transfer student talking to a student who he recognizes as the girl from the newspaper club. He couldn't possibly be threatening her right…!? But although she seemed nervous, they just seemed to be talking. When the transfer student leaves, she breathes out a sigh of relief and notices him standing by the classroom's door.

"Uh… that was the transfer student, wasn't it?" He decides to say. "Um… did he have something he wanted?"

"A-ah, the transfer student… he just asked me some questions about the volleyball club. He and Sakamoto-kun have been going around talking to the volleyball club members today."

The transfer student and Sakamoto again…? That can't be good news. And what's this about the volleyball club anyway? The volleyball club is…

...

He thinks of Kitano.

He thinks of Mishima.

He thinks of the PE faculty club and the unsettling feeling everyone gets from there.

He thinks of Kamoshida-sensei.

He glances at his arms. He remembers the feeling of the contact the ball made with his skin harsh enough to bruise.

It stings.

**4/15**

_What the hell?_

A cat. There's a cat.

There's a cat in the transfer student's desk.

He's seen the transfer student use his phone in class from time to time, but actually bringing a cat to school… this is some level of delinquency!?

However, before he could dwell on the thought any furtherー

"Heyー"

ーa loud voice of panic interrupts.

"That's…!"

"Enough! This is a classroom!"

"Wait… She's going to jump!"

Under all the panicked voices and murmurs, he manages to hear Mishima cry out, "Suzui…!?"

"Shiho…!" Takamaki rushes out from her desk.

Kurou himself feels his feet hurriedly rush outside the classroom and into the crowd of panicked students. From the windows, he sees the girl standing on the rooftop's ledge.

He sees her body tilt forwardー

ーand falls.

He feels like this should be a sight that he should look away from. But he can't seem to move his body. His body feels like a statue. He can't seem to tear his eyes away from the sight of the girl falling as her body makes harsh contact with the ground.

His body continues to remain numb as he hears the screams around him. He could hear Ushimaru-sensei shouting and trying to get the students back into their classrooms in vain. The ambulance comes to take the girl's body to the hospital, and he sees Takamaki rush over to the girl's side and accompanies her inside the ambulance.

Once he feels his senses come back, he heads to the washroom to cool himself down.

_Just what the hell was going on with this school? Why did things have come to this..._

On the way back to the classroom, he sees a trembling figure trying to hold themselves up by the wall. The red hair and ribbon… it's the other transfer studentーthe first year.

"Um… are you OK?" He asks, trying not to startle her.

"O-oh… u-um… I…."

"Your face looks pale… do you want me to take you to the nurse's office…?"

She shakes her head. "N-no… I… I'll be fine… I'm sorry… I think I... just need a minute to compose myself…"

He lets her sit at the nearby stairs as he buys some water at a vending machine. He watches her drink silently as she slowly calms down. "I'm… I'm very sorry… I just wasn't... expecting to see something like that…"

It was understandable. It was only a normal reaction to witnessing such a scene. To think she had to experience something like this after just transferring… Kurou feels bad for her experiencing her first year of school like this.

"Seeing that… just gave me a shock…" she continues in a low murmur. There seems to be a hollow look in her eyes. "Seeing her jump off… it made me wonder… what if I…"

"Um..." He tries to say in concern.

The first year girl trails off, closes her eyes and slightly shakes her head as if to shake the thoughts away. She looks back to Kurou with some slight cheer. "I'm very sorry… I really don't know what came over me… Ah, and you even bought some water for me. Please allow me to pay you back!"

Kurou puts his hands up in protest. "No, no! It's fine, I don't mind at all! I just hope you're feeling better."

"Is that so… Yes, I am feeling a bit better now. I am very sorry to have worried you… Ah, and your uniform… a second year! I'm very sorry to have given my senpai trouble like this!" She says with a shamed bow.

Kurou tries to wave it off again. "N-no, no, not at all! It's of no trouble to me!"

"I'm very grateful for your kindness, senpai," she says with another bow. In the distance, they can hear a teacher's shout. "Ah, it seems they're calling us back to our classrooms. It looks like I have to go now. Once again, thank you very much, senpai!"

With a hurried bow, she heads towards her classroom. Kurou does the same and returns to his classroom. Because of the incident, classes have been cancelled today and the students will be given free period as the faculty does a meeting.

Later in the day, Takamaki eventually returns from the hospital. There are rumors that say that the delinquent transfer student, Sakamoto, and Mishima had tried to attack Kamoshida-sensei, and must be involved with the girl'sーSuzui'sーincident somehow. Proper disciplinary action should be taken towards them, and that would be by expelling them out of the school.

\---

Classes had resumed to normal the day after. Kurou's mother had been upset and disappointed at the news of the incident; having expected better of a school like Shujin with its prestige, and was reconsidering if his little sister should enroll there for her highschool in the future. Still, it's the school he's currently studying in the present, so his mother had told him to continue to take care and study hard while the school had better sort the entire issue out.

The principal had insisted on proceeding with classes as normal like they usually do, trying to contain any news of the incident from spreading any further and calm everyone down. He heard that to reflect further upon this incident, they would be having major discussions on their board meeting on the 2nd of May.

Kurou went on with his normal student life… or least tried to. The transfer student continued to bring that cat to school everyday, seeing it inside his desk everytime during class, and he wonders if he may be going crazy; as he sees the transfer student seemingly talking to the cat every once in a while. Kurou desperately refrained from saying anything about it. The less chances of calling the transfer student's attention, the better.

(And not that he would openly admit it, but the cat is rather cute.)

Everyone has been talking about how the transfer student will be or should be expelled already, but despite all the nasty rumors he continues to go to school quietly and doesn't seem to be paying too much attention to all the rumors. Kurou would see the transfer student often stop by the library to borrow books, and see him read on the train ride to school on some days. He sometimes thinks that he spots him roaming around the Underground Shibuya Mall, but he desperately hopes that it's all in his imagination.

However, despite his fears, it seems that the delinquent transfer student had been rather… behaved so far. For someone with a criminal record like him, he had yet to see him cause any actual trouble. If anything, the transfer student is rather… odd. He's seen him frequently purchase large amount of drinks from the vending machines and hoard them for some reason.

_Could it be the transfer student is actually more of a weird person than a criminal?_ Kurou thinks to himself one day as he prepares to leave school.

Kurou stops in place. At the corner of the hallway, he sees the transfer student is there along with two male students wearing gym uniforms. Their conversation sounds like something he shouldn't be getting involved into.

"Heh. Hey, we heard you and Sakamoto are getting expelled."

Eh, seriously? He didn't think people would actually have the guts to talk to the transfer student like that.

The other guy looks at the transfer student with a sneer. 

"Hmph, serves you two right. We don't need your kind in this school. Sakamoto especially had it coming. Who the hell does he think he is, coming to school acting as if nothing was wrong? He doesn't have any right to be living so carefree like that not after that shit he pulled in the track team! Good riddance!"

The transfer student says nothing. He remains quiet, just as always.

But.

Kurou sees it. The expression on his face.

It's enough to make him take a frightened step back. Kurou sees the two students visibly pale, their earlier arrogant bluster completely gone.

"H-hey, we should get out of here…"

"U-ugh, crap, nothing good comes out with getting involved with some thug…"

The two students hurry away. Kurou doesn't hesitate in leaving the scene either in an attempt to preserve his life.

That look on the transfer's face just then…!! It was an incredibly frightening expression! It was definitely the look of a murderer!! What the hell was he thinking, letting his guard down and allowing himself to think the transfer student was harmless!!

He makes sure to avoid making any contact with the transfer student after that. Living a normal highschool life, that's what he's supposed to be doing, right? He can't let himself be involved in anything troublesome that could possibly affect his future. Live a peaceful life in harmony with others, isn't that what any proper person of society should strive for?

That's the way things are supposed to be. But…

"I heard it was already posted by the time everyone got here this morning…"

_Kamoshida Suguru, the utter bastard of lust._

_We know how shitty you are, and that you put your twisted desires on students that can't fight back. That's why we have decided to steal away those desires and make you confess your sins. We hope you will be ready._

_From, the Phantom Thieves of Hearts_

What's with this message...? A calling card? From phantom thieves? Was this made by a group of people acting out against Kamoshida-sensei?

In the end it all comes back to Kamoshida-sensei, doesn't it...

Deep down in his heart, Kurou knew. Though he had desperately tried to deny it, deep down inside he always knew there was something not right with Kamoshida-sensei. Kitano, Mishima, and the volleyball team… he had chosen to look away. He was just a simple student after all. Even if he had tried to do something, what could he have possibly accomplished against a highly respected teacher with authority like Kamoshida?

This whole Phantom Thieves of Hearts feels like a bunch of delusional people. What could they possibly do? It feels like some sort of prank. That's what Kurou had thought.

Then on May 2nd, during their school assembly, Kamoshida-sensei barges in during the principal's speech.

"I have… been reborn," Kamoshida-sensei says as he weeps on the school stage. He confesses to everything; for abusing the members of the volleyball team and being responsible for driving Suzui to try and kill herself. He confesses to wrongly trying to get students expelled and trying to force Takamaki into a relationship. When he starts calling for the police, the faculty tries to calm the situation down by making the students go back to their classrooms.

"What, no way, Kamoshida-sensei? Really?"

"I've always suspected something was up with the volleyball club…"

"Ahh, Kamoshida-sensei was that kind of disgusting person? I can't believe I used to look up to him until now…"

"Oh no, I feel bad for having treated Takamaki-san like that... I should apologize to her…"

"Hey, does this mean those Phantom Thieves were behind this? They did send that calling card after all…"

"Eh, really? Are they actually real?"

"The timing is just too…"

Everyone in class is wildly talking about Kamoshida-sensei. And those "Phantom Thieves of Hearts"... Kurou had doubted about them. After all, a group of phantom thieves coming to steal people's twisted desires? It's something that would come out straight from a manga. It's something that only exists in fiction. But Kamoshida confessed to his deeds. It was like he had a complete change of heart.

In Kurou's years of Shujin, he was used to living through the same school routines, and had long accepted Kamoshida's presence and influence as part of the school. He'd heard rumors about him even as a first year, but had grown to silently accept things as the way they were and look away from the rumors. Kamoshida was a prominent figure in Shujin after all, it felt ridiculous to think of a highly successful and respected person in such a bad light. No one had dared to challenge his authority… until now. Things have changed. 

Eventually, Kawakami-sensei comes back into the classroom, announcing that the school will be proceeding with classes as usual. While listening to the lesson, Kurou notices the transfer student seemingly struggling to take down notes. Ah, that's right, he wasn't present here when the class had discussed it.

…

"Hey, Amamiya. Here." Kurou hands over his notes.

Amamiya blinks and looks at him in complete surprise before he slowly reaches out to take his notebook. Come to think of it, he doesn't ask around for notes anymore, not ever since the first day he transferred. "...Thank you." Kurou tries to pretend he doesn't see the figure of a cat watching from inside of Amamiya's desk.

The transfer student… Amamiya… Kamoshida… and The Phantom Thieves…

Azuma Kurou is only a simple, normal highschooler. But it seems like his highschool life isn't looking as normal anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> *Going by the apparent theme naming of the characters being named after famous Japanese people in real life, Azuma Kurou (written as アズマ 九郎) coincidentally shares a surname with Azuma Makoto, a Japanese flower artist.
> 
> *His name is a reference to the character Azuma Kei from Shin Megami Tensei NINE, a game that the entity Sophia and Yaldabaoth first debuted in. His name contains the character 九 (ku) "nine" to further emphasize this.


End file.
